Throwing shade (literally)

For several years, Ted and I have talked about getting a cantilevered umbrella to shade the “house corner” of the pool area.  This year, we decided to go for it.

First, we went to the umbrella store.

The guys at the loading dock were doubtful, but we got a regular umbrella, the cantilevered umbrella, its stand, 200 lb. of sand, and both of us in the Prius.

The car was full, leaving just enough room for Ted to operate the gearshift.

“Assemble it where you want it” we were told, so we did.  This is what 200 lb. of sand looks like in the umbrella base.

The next step was to attach the base cover.  The directions wisely advised having two people to assemble the umbrella, so we worked on it together.  Then Ted posed while I took pictures.

Here’s the post that will anchor the umbrella.

The most awkward job:  getting the entire umbrella unit onto the anchor post.  Oof!  Eighty-eight pounds!

The last step:  relax under the shade thrown by the new umbrella.  The green umbrella on the right is the cantilevered one; the red one on the left is the other new one we bought.We put our two old umbrellas and an umbrella stand at the curb.  In less than ten minutes, they all had new owners.